Former coach will not stand trial in rape case
A FORMER athletics coach from Wigan will never stand trial over allegations of rape and sexual assault against schoolgirls more than 20 years ago.
Prosecutors have decided they do not have grounds to revive the case of George Kirk which was shelved in April 2000 when the Standish pensioner collapsed with a stroke and was deemed unfit by the judge to testify.
A number of women had come forward in the late 1990s saying that while they were young members of the all-female running group The Eagles, based at the old Woodhouse Stadium in Beech Hill, they were either raped or molested by the man who coached them.
The investigation took more than two years to get to court, and the proceedings were further delayed by Mr Kirk's ill health on several occasions. On the day the trial was due to start, he collapsed and was rushed to hospital where he lay unconscious for 24 hours and lost feeling down one side.
The case was ordered by Bolton Crown Court recorder Anthony Gee QC to "lie on file" - a term which in most instances means that allegations remain untried. But it does allow for a case to be re-listed if the prosecution can produce new evidence or prove a change of cirumstances.
And a year ago one of the women who had made a complaint of sexual assault against Mr Kirk contacted the Crown Prosecution Service from her new home in New Zealand, asking it to take the matter back to court by again testing the now 83-year-old accused's medical fitness.
The CPS wrote to Mr Kirk's solicitors requesting a fresh medical, initially believing that if he refused (he is not obliged to agree to one) or was passed fit, they would then be able to present the case afresh to a judge.
However, after no agreement to a new examination was forthcoming, further legal research and consultation was carried out and the CPS concluded it would not be able to get the case re-listed. The service has not confirmed or denied the pensioner's advanced age and the fact that the charges related to alleged incidents as long ago as 1975 affected its deliberations.
A CPS statement simply read: "The Crown Prosecution Service originally tried to prosecute George Kirk in 2000. However, he was deemed unfit to stand trial for health reasons and the judge in the case ordered the matter to lie on file. This meant that the case could not be taken further without the specific consent of the Crown Court.
"We looked at this case again recently to see whether we may be able to apply to the court to have it re-listed. However, after reviewing the case thoroughly, considering the evidence in great detail and also seeking the advice of independent counsel, we have concluded that we have no reasonable grounds for making this application."
At Mr Kirk's home in Wakefield Crescent, Standish, family declined to comment, referring any statements to his solicitor, Julian Linskill.
Mr Linskill in turn only said: "As far as Mr Kirk and his lawyers are concerned the case was closed six years ago."
But one of the women who had made an allegation against the former coach said: "This case did not fall by the wayside in the first place because of a lack of evidence, but because of the apparent state of the defendant's health. Now we have been told that just because they can't find out whether his condition has changed that's the end of it.
"For those of us who pressed charges we have been denied the opportunity to see justice take its course. That is bitterly disappointing."
The New Zealand-based woman who called on the CPS to re-examine the case was today unavailable for comment.
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Thursday 02 September 2010
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